Talk about a trip you took out to Anza Borrego
Inspiration Wash: Must Do
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anutami Posts: 491
4/29/2013
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This is fun to drive all the way out old springs open space preserve out near the dump in borrego. you will encounter sand dunes and 4wd is a must. Took this trip a while back when heading home from palm springs on a business trip. It is nice to be able to take different "long cuts" on the way home. I have a goal of one day driving on all 500 miles of jeep trails in ABDSP.
top of the wash with great views. This also would make a very nice campsite and stargazing 
top of the bluff looking south
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dsefcik Administrator Posts: 2622
4/29/2013
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Ahhh...there is "that" ridgeline.....I will be heading back out there again this weekend.
Nolan (anutami) wrote:
top of the wash with great views. This also would make a very nice campsite and stargazing
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http://www.sefcik.com
http://www.darensefcik.com
http://www.carrizogorge.com
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tommy750 Posts: 1049
4/29/2013
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Nice post, Nolan. Guess the new Tahoe stayed home? Was out in Beckman Wash and Inspiration Wash in February with the geologist Paul Remeika and a ABF tour. He pointed out this white layer visible all through this area. He correctly identified it years ago as ash from the Long Valley Caldera eruption 760,000 years ago. All you guys who frequent the Eastern Sierras have driven through the caldera on 395. On GE, it's 340 miles north of Anza Borrego. The explosion pumped out 140 cubic miles of debris. Mt. St. Helens was only 0.3 cubic miles. Really hard to imagine a foot of ash here in the desert from that far away!
Bishop Tufa by tomteske, on Flickr
Long Valley Caldera by tomteske, on Flickr
Here's an unexcavated skeleton of a horse or camel Remeika pointed out in the same area. He says the park has so many collected horses and camel skeletons they're just going to leave this one there. Tom
Bones by tomteske, on Flickr
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dsefcik Administrator Posts: 2622
4/30/2013
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Good stuff Tom.....thanks for more amazing and great info.
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http://www.sefcik.com
http://www.darensefcik.com
http://www.carrizogorge.com
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anutami Posts: 491
4/30/2013
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dsefcik wrote:
Good stuff Tom.....thanks for more amazing and great info.
Yeah great stuff!!! Camel bones are amazing. Ash? Would have never guessed, how on earth did they come to that conclusion? Did the ash accumulate in the shallow sea and accumulate as stagnate water or was it before the shallow sea? And before a freshwater lake.... The area has soooo much history. Thats why I love the place!
Unfortunately this was the xterras last trip. I did it before I got the tahoe....still regretting it since it was my wife and I first big purchase
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tommy750 Posts: 1049
5/1/2013
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Nolan (anutami) wrote:
dsefcik wrote:
Good stuff Tom.....thanks for more amazing and great info.
Yeah great stuff!!! Camel bones are amazing. Ash? Would have never guessed, how on earth did they come to that conclusion? Did the ash accumulate in the shallow sea and accumulate as stagnate water or was it before the shallow sea? And before a freshwater lake.... The area has soooo much history. Thats why I love the place!
Unfortunately this was the xterras last trip. I did it before I got the tahoe....still regretting it since it was my wife and I first big purchase
Apparently every volcanic eruption has a distinct ash fingerprint. Remeika said he sent off a sample to the "big volcanic ash repository back east" and a month or so later, voila, a positive ID as Bishop Tuff, the ejecta from the Long Valley Caldera. Not sure the climate of Anza Borrego back then. Agree, lots of history. Tom
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DesertWRX Posts: 135
5/3/2013
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When we want to do a short trip often we will go to Inspiration Wash. Had many a lunch at Inspiration Point...
Lower down in the wash I got myself a plastic wine glass! Use it all the time for camping now...
You certainly know when you hit that cement hard ash in that side of the badlands!.
edited by DesertWRX on 5/3/2013
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